VATICAN CITY: The cardinal widely blamed for failing to prevent a series of ethical and financial scandals during the reign of former Pope Benedict stepped down yesterday, ending an era fraught with embarrassments.
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, 78, left his post as secretary of state, the number two in the Vatican hierarchy, and handed over the role of “deputy pope” to Archbishop Pietro Parolin, a 58-year-old career diplomat.
Bertone’s departure is the most visible break with the hierarchy left by Benedict and comes as Pope Francis prepares to overhaul the notoriously secretive Vatican administration and its scandal-hit bank.
Parolin, a former Vatican nuncio (ambassador) to Venezuela, is known for a frugal lifestyle in tune with the pope’s own preferences.
He was not present at yesterday’s handover ceremony, after undergoing surgery while visiting his family in northern Italy.
In his address at the handover, Francis made several references to the difficulties that marked Bertone’s tenure as secretary of state, speaking of a “thorny” period. Bertone was one of the most controversial secretaries in modern Vatican history. He presided over a period beset by scandals and intrigue and came in for heavy criticism and accusations of mismanagement.
But Benedict, who in February became the first pope in 600 years to resign, stood by him and dismissed suggestions by other Church leaders that Bertone should be sacked.
Although he has no power to rule on doctrinal issues, the secretary of state sits in when the pope is ill. He sets the tone for the Vatican’s central administration, known as the Curia, and is involved in everything from finances and the appointment of bishops to diplomatic relations with more than 180 countries
One of the most damaging scandals to hit the Vatican under Bertone was “Vatileaks”, when Benedict’s butler stole documents alleging corruption from the pope’s desk and leaked them to the media. That coincided with tumult at the Vatican bank, which Italian magistrates are investigating on suspicion of money
laundering. REUTERS
